Arnhem

Arnhem is the capital of the Dutch province Gelderland. It was built on both banks of the rivers Nederrijn and Sint-Jansbeek, which were the source of the city's development. The larger area of the municipality of Arnhem has a south-eastern border that is partly formed by the river IJssel. It forms the northern part of the Stadsregio Arnhem Nijmegen. Arnhem had a population of 151,356 in 2014 and is one of the larger cities of the Netherlands.

History
Though the early tracks of settlements showed that the early residents of Arnhem descended from the forests on the hills, Arnhem was not built on the banks of the river Rhine, but a little higher along the Sint-Jansbeek. Arnhem arose on the location where the road between Nijmegen and Utrecht/Zutphen split. Seven streams provided the city with water, and only when the flow of the Rhine was changed in 1530, was the city located on the river.

in 1543, it fell to the emperor Charles V. As capital of the so-called "Kwartier van Veluwe" it joined the Union of Utrecht during the Eighty Years' War in 1579. After its capture from the Spanish forces by Dutch and English troops in 1585 the city became part of the Republic of the Seven United Provinces of the Netherlands.

The French occupied the town from 1672 to 1674, and preoccupied it from 1795 to 1813.

In the 19th century, Arnhem was a genteel resort town famous for its picturesque beauty. It was known as "The Little Hague of the East", mainly because a number of rich former sugar barons or planters from the Indies settled there, as they did in The Hague.

In the World War II, during Operation Market Garden, the British 1st Airborne Division were given the task of securing the bridge at Arnhem. A second battle of Arnhem took place in April 1945 when the city was liberated by the British 49th Infantry Division fighting as part of the First Canadian Army. Much of the old centre had been destroyed, resulting in a modern city arising in its place.

By car
Arnhem is connected with multiple highways.

A12: (west-east) The road connects the city of The Hague, with the German border, connecting to the German Autobahn A3.

A50: (north-south) Is a highway in the Netherlands, stretching from Eindhoven in the southeast up to Zwolle in the northeast of the country.

A325: The highway between Arnhem and Nijmegen

By train or bus
Arnhem has four train stations to its name: is the main station of Arnhem, opened in May 1845. The station, which with 40,000 passengers per day is the ninth busiest station in the Netherlands, has two exits, one of which, Sonsbeekzijde, is on the northwest side of the train station, and can be identified as the elevated walkway across the tracks. As the exit's name implies, it is closest to Park Sonsbeek and has a smaller bus halt at which international buses, most notably FlixBus, stop. The city side exit is found on the east side, and has escalators and steps going down. Here you'll find on-the-go shops, though these are quite expensive compared to their counterparts outside of the station. The city centre is a few minutes away by foot. Optionally, you could take a (trolley) bus from the bus station, which is incorporated into the train station. It too can be found on the city side of the station. Arnhem Centraal is on the Amsterdam — Frankfurt am Main InterCity Express (ICE) line, as well as an international stopping train to Dusseldorf (RE 19) serviced by Abellio. The Deutschlandticket is valid for rides between Arnhem and North Rhine Westfalia in the RE19. Sprinters and Intercity's connect to 's-Hertogenbosch, Utrecht, Amsterdam, Schiphol, Ede-Wageningen, Wijchen, Zutphen and many more. Stoptreinen serviced by Arriva and Breng will get you to Doetinchem, Winterswijk or Tiel.

The other three stations in Arnhem which connect to more urban areas of the city are:
 * , on the south bank of the river Rhine,
 * , near the shopping centre of the same name; and
 * , near the Steenstraat and the Klarendal Fashion Quarter.

By plane
Arnhem is near several airports:

Amsterdam-Schiphol airport, The largest airport in the Netherlands, and the fifth largest in Europe. It is 110 km to the northwest. The train takes about 75 min, and will cost one way. Schiphol airport gets served by most major carriers, and has an excess of 100 flights per day to the United States alone.

By car: Take the A12 to Utrecht, Then heading to Amsterdam via A2 and then A9 to Schiphol Airport. Expect this to take anywhere from 60–75 minutes in regular traffic.

Weeze Airport, 80 km southeast of Arnhem just across the border with Germany, near the village of Weeze (Germany). Although Ryanair (the biggest airline serving the airport) and the airport advertise with the name Düsseldorf-Weeze, the airport isn't near Düsseldorf. The city of Düsseldorf is 80 km to the southeast of the airport. Weeze serves over 50 destinations across Europe, Northern Africa and Western Asia.

The only direct public transportation from Weeze to Arnhem is a taxivan costing €16 euro one-way, and you will have to make a reservation beforehand. For timetabling see the taxivan's website. Journey time will be about 70 minutes. Pick-up and drop-off in Arnhem will be at the Gelredome Stadium/McDonald's. If your plane lands shortly before the bus is scheduled to leave give them a quick call on the tarmac and they will wait for you.

Otherwise, the more adventurous can take a bus from Weeze to Kleve, then a train to Nijmegen, where you can catch a connecting train to Arnhem. This journey can take between 2.5 and 3 hours.

Eindhoven Airport, 85 km to the southwest of Arnhem. From the airport you take bus 401 to Eindhoven Central Station and then a train to 's Hertogenbosch (which is the same as Den Bosch). In 's Hertogenbosch, change trains and take the train to Arnhem. This journey will take you approximately 100 minutes by public transportation.

When driving, take the A50, (Zwolle-Eindhoven) which skirts the west of the metropolitan area to the Eindhoven ring road (A58/A2) Airport exit is exit 29 on the A2.

Flughafen Düsseldorf, about one-third the size of Amsterdam-Schiphol, but with plenty of international connections, including to the US, and gets served by all the major airlines in Europe. Although it doesn't get nearly as many flights as Amsterdam does, it's cheaper, doesn't have nearly as many congestion problems, and generally much less hassle at the airport.

From Arnhem's main train station you can take the ICE train to Düsseldorf Hbf, where you can take S1 to Flughafen terminal. The train to Düsseldorf Hbf will take around 70 minutes.

By bicycle
Arnhem is on EuroVelo 15 and LF-3.

For information on the adjacent German section, see Rhine Rad Weg.

By bus
Arnhem is the only city in the Netherlands that uses trolleybuses as a means of public transportation. The bus station is next to the train station in the city centre. There is a fast and frequent trolleybus network. From here you also can take a local bus or buses to cities like Apeldoorn (bus 91 and 231) and Nijmegen (331 stops only on the main stopping places, also 33 but he takes a longer route). Timetables and prices can be found here.

By bicycle
There is a bike rental at the Stationsplein (Station square) next to the exit of the Station. The rate per day is €5.20, per week (5 days or longer) it's €21.

At the bike rental a deposit of €25 per bicycle is required. Payment by credit card is accepted. It is possible to take out a bicycle insurance. The premium amounts to €0.50 a day per bike. The deposit amount is doubled when a bicycle insurance is not taken out.

By taxi
There are several taxi services in Arnhem. The most common service is Taxi Arnhem, they can be reached 24/7 at. You can also arrange for the taxi to pick you up from Schiphol Airport or Eindhoven Airport.

Taxis can be found waiting near Arnhem Central Station. Taxi drivers in Arnhem do not use Uber, Lyft, or a similar service, so you have to phone a taxi to book one.

By car
There are several car rentals in Arnhem:


 * Europcar, Boulevard Heuvelink 5.
 * Hertz, Bergstraat 2.
 * KAV, Stieltjesweg 17.

Events

 * The Living Statues exhibition is one of the great summer attractions for the city, with around 250 competitors from around the world. The event takes place during the last weekend of August and dates back to 1996. On Saturday the catwalks belong to child performers, whilst adult actors perform on Sunday afternoon.
 * The Airborne March is an annual Dutch commemorative event of remembrance that began in 1947 and takes place on the first Saturday in September in Oosterbeek near Arnhem. Over 34,000 people took part in the 65th march in 2011.
 * King's Day (formerly Queen's Day) is a national holiday celebrated on 27 April. Festivities will be held in the city centre.
 * Other national holidays, such as Sinterklaas and Carnival, are also celebrated publicly with events and parades throughout the city.

Sports

 * Football: SBV Vitesse were relegated in 2024 and now play soccer in Eerste Divisie, the second tier. Their home ground Gelredome (capacity 21,000) is 2 km south of town centre, use Bus 7. It also hosts concerts and events such as the truck show Monster Jam.

Buy
The city center in Arnhem has four major shopping areas, that are connected with each other. They are the Roggestraat, Ketelstraat, Vijzelstraat, and the Rijnstraat. It's a pedestrian zone and has a length of approximately 1.5 km. These streets are paved with shops and boutiques, and form Arnhems main shopping area.

Just outside the city centre near the Arnhem Velperpoort train station is the Steenstraat, a well-known shopping street.

Eat
Typical to Arnhem are the Arnhemse meisjes ('Arnhem girls'), a local type cookie. You can also enjoy a wide variety of traditional Dutch treats, such as stroopwafels, at many vendors and stores in Arnhem's city center. There's a wide variety of restaurants, especially in and near the city center, but also in the Kronenburg shopping center.

Budget
If you don't have a Taco Bell in your country, there is one near the central train station. Burger King has plant-based burgers for the same price as the ones with meat, including hamburger and cheeseburger.

The following eateries are in the city centre:



Drink
For Arnhem's nightlife visit one of the many pubs, clubs and bars on and near the Korenmarkt, including The Cavern, Bloopers, Jules, Aspen Valley, The Manhattan and The Move. The nightlife in Arnhem is predominantly active on weekends after midnight; on weekdays or before 12 on weekends you can expect to find most clubs mostly empty.

Sleep

 * Hotel de Bilderberg, Oosterbeek
 * Hotel de Bilderberg, Oosterbeek
 * Hotel de Bilderberg, Oosterbeek
 * Hotel de Bilderberg, Oosterbeek
 * Hotel de Bilderberg, Oosterbeek
 * Hotel de Bilderberg, Oosterbeek
 * Hotel de Bilderberg, Oosterbeek

Connect
As of July 2022, Arnhem has 5G from all Dutch carriers.

Go next
From Arnhem, the Hoge Veluwe National Park and Veluwezoom National Park are just a hop away to the north. There are accommodations for the parks in the towns and cities surrounding it.

Arnhem and Nijmegen have very close ties, as a result, travelling from Arnhem to Nijmegen can be done with ease, whether you're travelling by car (via A325) or train (direct line).